The No.5 Florida Gators only led for five seconds against South Carolina, but it was the most important five seconds; the final five. Florida’s defense fueled a 14-point comeback to escape Columbia with a 70-69 win. The Gators improved to 17-2 (4-2 SEC) on the 2024/25 season while South Carolina dropped to 10-9 (0-6 SEC).
Defensive adjustment
Trailing 36-29 at halftime, Todd Golden made a significant defensive adjustment that ultimately led to Florida sparking a massive comeback win. The Gators put on a full court press for a majority of the second half, forcing South Carolina to turn the ball over 12 times in the final 20 minutes. The Gamecocks had just three turnovers in the first half, which was the difference in Florida’s seven-point deficit.
South Carolina’s guards never looked comfortable against the press, lacking the court awareness needed to successfully transition up court. The Gators were able to create offense with their defense, scoring 22 points off turnovers including 16 in the second half. Down 11 points with over eight minutes to play, Florida went on a 6-0 run in just 27 seconds thanks to a pair of South Carolina turnovers. The constant pressure settled Florida down on both ends of the court, providing easy buckets in transition.
Will Richard
Florida guard Will Richard was dynamite on both ends of the court vs South Carolina. If hitting the game winning layup wasn’t enough, the senior led Florida with 22 points on 9-14 shooting including 3-5 from three-point range. Richard was a menace on defense and on the offensive glass, recording three steals, one block, and four rebounds, three of which were offensive.
It was clear from the jump that this was one of those Will Richard games we see from time to time, which explains why he was off the court for just three minutes on Wednesday night. If anyone deserved this victory, it was Will Richard, who was truly sensational in his 37 minutes.
Final thoughts
Florida has performed exceptionally well in the second half of games this season, but they keep finding themselves in stressful matchups due to sluggish starts on both ends of the court. They need to figure out how to come out of the gate with the same intensity, effort, and discipline that they finish games with if they want to compete for a National Championship. The positive is that Florida did and has responded to ‘wake up’ calls this season.
Road wins are significant in this league. Although South Carolina was 0-5 (now 0-6) in the conference, they have been a tough opponent at home this year, which is a theme around college basketball in the SEC. The Gamecocks beat No.25 Clemson at home and suffered a three-point loss to No.1 Auburn this season. The Gators will take a road win in Columbia, even if it was ugly at times.
Florida is set to take on rival Georgia on Saturday, January 25th inside the O’Connell Center.